Thursday, January 22, 2009

Can I Get a Little Traveling Music, Please?

The parade of finishing continues.

These socks have been on the needles since the Pleistocene Era. Not because they're complicated, but because they're not complicated. I kept falling asleep over them.

The yarn is KnitPicks Felici in Schooner (a colorway now sadly discontinued). This was my first tango with self-striping yarn, because I'm a control freak. When I'm knitting, I want to be the one making the Big Decisions. I don't want my socks to stripe themselves. To me, self-striping yarn is like an uppity little kid who insists I join him to play "Heart and Soul" on the piano when I'd rather take a nap.

Kinda makes you wonder why I knit a whole pair of socks with the stuff, doesn't it?

To show off the striping I limited the texture to k1b, p1 rib–all the way down the leg and instep. I will never do that again. After I finished the second sock, I did a bit of hunting around and discovered that forcing prisoners of war to work k1b, p1 rib for more than 15 minutes at a time is a violation of the Geneva Convention.

On the Road Again

Departure is imminent for my trip to Threadbear Fiber Arts Studio in Lansing, Michigan. On Saturday the 24th, I'll be teaching a day-long class on Elizabeth Zimmermann's Tomten Jacket (which is sold out, they tell me). On Sunday the 25th from 1–4 pm, I'll be doing a meet-and-greet and signing copies of the little book.

In late February, I'll be going back to the land of my birth (southwestern Pennsylvania) for two events at Natural Stitches in Pittsburgh. On February 28 at 4:30 p.m., we'll have a book signing/reading. The next morning, at 11 a.m., I'll be teaching a three-hour introduction to lace knitting. (Class sign-ups open on February 2–contact the shop.) There will also be a community service project going on during my visit, so check out the shop's site for more information.

And I am still working on responding to 100+ good people who sent suggestions for venues in North Carolina. Thanks to all of you–who knew so many North Carolinians were reading this? Something is in the works, and when everything is confirmed I'll make a great big noise about it in here.

(By the way, I also appreciate the folks who leave comments saying, "Why don't you come to [name of place]?" I'd love to, darlings, but until my real parents turn up and hand me the key to the vault containing my small private fortune, I can usually only travel if a shop or guild has me out to speak or teach a class. So if you'd like to see me, just ask your shop or guild to contact me at franklin at franklinhabit daht cahm, and I'll send them my information.)

I admire your persistence in getting your socks to be identical -- I've given up and just do fraternal socks with striped yarns. You did a lovely job of matching the socks up, and they look terrific.

At least you'll wear colors. My husband wants socks knit on 2 mm needles, in nothing but assorted shades of muddy brown, with a 12-inch leg. Surely that falls under the new "no torture" standards in the president's executive order today!

ACK! ACK! ACK! You're comming to Pittsburgh. Oh joy, oh joy, oh joy!! Oh... you're coming two days before my dissertation is due. Oh dear... Well, if you see a rumpled woman with a serious need for undereye cream at your book signing, you'll know who it is.

Yay! Franklin is going to be within a reasonable driving distance from NE Ohio! And, I've been struggling with lace knitting for some time, so if I can get a spot in the Pittsburgh class, all the better!

I think those boring to knit, but nice in the end, socks are great to have to grab as you walk out the door. I cannot live without a sock shoved in my bag for unexpected waiting. I'm sure that not carrying such a sock causes waiting to occur, a theory I have confirmed many times.

They look lovely (Abigail's mittens are just awesome too!). But if you have any more self-striping yarn in your stash, allow me to highly recommend Charlene Schurch's Chevron socks. The pattern warps the strong stripes into interesting triangular shapes, and the pattern is much kinder to a knitter's sensibilities.

See, that's the difference between YOU (a *real* **knitter**) and me, because I LURVE me some mindless knitting. (Ex.: see 13' Dr Who Scarf). But those ARE excellent fine socks, true enough. And because I DO go for the Mindless, Brainless knitting (you know, the kind they teach in Homes for the Temporary Rest of Mothers of Seven Children Under Two) I love that self-striping yarn. Makes me feel so -- adept! Oh.....and are you saying that, if I paid your way, put you up and fed you you'd come hang out at the LYS with me and the peeps for No Pertickler Reason? {very evil grin}

Don't worry, I will certainly drop your name and contact info at my LYS! (Though I'm quite sure they know you're around, it can't hurt to give them a shove in the right direction.)

I know what you mean about the socks. They're beautiful, though. (I'm struggling through a pair of leaf green socks in KP Essentials. Do you know how annoying a stockinette-with-faint-twisted stitch stripe is to knit? WORSE than ribbing. They'll be done by 2025, though.)

Love the Pleistocene socks! Too bad that color way is discontinued. Being a Maine girl, I like the colors AND the name. Have you had the pleasure of running into Schooner Fare while you've been in Maine. My kinda music!

It is so good to hear someone else say that if something isn't complicated that you fall asleep! I am the same way, and I so much want to knit things that are easy, but I just can't stay awake, all that repetition just lulls me away. So, I have similar feelings about self patterning yarn. But they do look great!!

It is so good to hear someone else say that if something isn't complicated that you fall asleep! I am the same way, and I so much want to knit things that are easy, but I just can't stay awake, all that repetition just lulls me away. So, I have similar feelings about self patterning yarn. But they do look great!!

It was a pleasure talking with you today at Threadbear. I wish I had half of your historical knitting knowledge! Looking forward to the next book. And Dolores, well, I expect she'll show up when we least expect - like at Lila's kindergarten graduation.

Those socks are LOVELY!! I am so sad the yarn is no longer available though, LOL. I just got your book from the library and I have to say that it is not a good read for being somewhere public as I laughed out loud several times, drawing strange looks from the people around me. I must assume they know not of the hilarity of your work, thus thinking me a crazy-kntting-bag-holding-book-reading-while-standing-and-laughin-out-loud-lady. That's okay. I was happily immersed in your cartoons and spectacular stories. Love ya hon!! ;)

I feel your pain with the 1x1 rib - that mindnumbingly endless torture is why I abandoned and frogged a beanie-in-progress (improvised 1x1 rib in a 3ply yarn to teach myself how to knit Magic Loop). Never again! Unless it's only for trim purposes... any then only maybe.

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